Finally, the wedding processional started. Everyone stood. Todd clasped his hands in from of him, looking expectant and happy. I admired him. He knew what he wanted, and he was going for it—no matter what I or anyone else had said.
My little brother had bigger balls than I’d thought.
Then came Evie, in an enormous crystal-encrusted dress. I was surprised she could lug it down the aisle, bony as she was. Her father walked beside her, tall and proud, ready to give her away to one of the richest families in Massachusetts.
Evie reached us and beamed at Todd from behind her veil. He clasped her hands. She looked absolutely thrilled. Maybe she really was sincere, I thought.
If Todd could forgive her, maybe I should, too.
The priest started speaking, and I turned my attention to him. Until a few moments later, when I saw a flash of pale yellow.
And I turned to see Audrey hustling down the aisle and out of the church just as fast as she could go.
Audrey
“Hey, Dre!” Jenny pulled me in for a hug.
I was relieved to be next to her, to be distracted by her gorgeous dress. “You are stunning,” I said. She was wearing a long, jewel-toned mermaid gown, fitted to every inch of all her luscious inches. Her hair was also up in a bun. Large emerald earrings sparked on her ears. She looked classy and almost regal.
“Aw, thanks Dre. I guess I clean up okay,” she said, beaming at me in pleasure. “Cole bought the dress for me this morning. And the earrings.” Her skin looked flushed and glowing, like she had a very good-looking fever.
They must have had fun shopping again.
“That was nice,” I said to him. He was looking sharp in a black suit.
He gave me a big grin. “It was my pleasure. Jenny looks beautiful.” They clasped their hands together, and Cole moved in for a quick kiss. I moved away from them a little; it was suddenly getting hot in our aisle.
When Todd and his attendants came out, I tried not to stare at James. Tried and failed. He was so handsome in that tux, his huge shoulders visible under it, his steel-gray hair tousled to perfection. At one point he smiled at me, and my heart stopped.
I was going to have to give him an answer about what I wanted to happen after our trip. And even though I knew exactly what I wanted, I still had no idea what the right answer was.
“I still can’t believe he ate that crab cake, Audrey,” Cole said, pulling me from staring at James.
“Huh?” I asked.
“The crab cake you fed James. That first night I met you,” he said. “He hates crab. Loathes it.”
“I didn’t know,” I said, sheepish. “He didn’t say anything.”
Cole looked at me for a beat. “He must be completely in love with you.”
I just sat there, gaping, my mouth opening and closing. I felt them both watching me, a deep blush creeping up my neck.
“S’kay, Dre,” Jenny said, patting my arm. “It’s gonna be okay. Close your mouth—you look so pretty, you don’t wanna get drool on that dress.”
“I didn’t mean to make you upset,” Cole said, his brow furrowed. I decided there and then, in spite of how he’d tried to take me home that night and what Jenny had told me about the thing with his balls, that I liked him.
“You didn’t make me upset,” I said. It came out like a stammer. My heart was pounding in my chest.
“Dre doesn’t think it’s possible that he has feelings for her—she doesn’t believe in fairy tales. She’s a realist,” Jenny said, making it sound as if I were some sort of brain surgeon.
“Of course it’s possible,” Cole said, but now he had eyes only for her.
“Oh, Coley,” she said, throwing her arms around his neck. They started kissing again.
I moved a little further down the pew. It was getting really hot now.
On one hand, I wanted to believe that Cole knew what he was talking about. That James was in love me—because that would be my wish come true.
On the other hand, I hoped he was wrong, and that James wasn’t in love with me—because that wouldn’t be the best thing for James. I wasn’t the best thing for James.
The thing was, I still didn’t even know what he wanted.
The enormous church was packed, the pews filled with beautifully dressed people. The music started and the Prestons led the wedding processional. Mr. Preston looked dapper in his suit; Mrs. Preston looked like a glittering, illicitly smoothed matriarch from hell in her long, silver-beaded gown, secured at the waist with an enormous diamond broach.